Death By Chocolate Cake#2

This is the legendary doctored cake-mix recipe from Dom DeLuise’s cookbook, the kind of dessert that turns up at every potluck and family reunion because it requires zero baking skill but tastes like you spent the day. Five fixes to a boxed chocolate cake mix (instant pudding, sour cream, extra eggs, oil, and a whole bag of chocolate chips) transform it into something dense, fudgy, and ridiculous in the best way.

The instant pudding is the structural genius. It thickens the batter while adding starches that retain moisture during baking, so the cake stays soft for days. Sour cream does the same trick from the dairy side, contributing tang and tenderness through its acid and fat.

Doubling the oil from ¼ cup to ½ cup (the recipe’s optional adjustment) is the move many bakers swear by. The extra fat keeps the dense crumb from going dry and pushes it firmly into pound-cake territory.

Pro Tips

• Stir by hand with a wooden spoon. Mixers can incorporate too much air and break the dense, fudgy texture you want.
• Grease the Bundt pan thoroughly, including every detail of the design. Use baking spray with flour for the cleanest release.
• Let the cake cool 15 minutes in the pan, then turn out. Inverting too early or too late causes pieces to stick.
• The cake is moist enough to skip frosting, but a dusting of powdered sugar dresses it up.

Variations

• Substitute Grand Marnier or coffee for the water for chocolate-orange or mocha versions.
• Use white chocolate chips and white chocolate pudding for a white-on-dark cake with hidden white chocolate pockets.
• Drizzle a chocolate ganache over the cooled cake for a death-by-chocolate to the second power.